A journal of an Indonesian in The Netherlands

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Orange fever

The long awaited and anticipated Football World Cup 2014 starts today in Brazil. Dutch football team will play against Spain tomorrow.

One thing which can unite the Dutchies is the oranjekoorts (Orange Fever). In International sport events Dutch supporters are easy to spot in their vibrant orange gear.

This orange fever has hit the retail industry and TV. To mark the start of the football World Cup I pick these two TV commercials.

The first one is from ING. I like the vibe. It is called ‘Wat gaat het worden’ meaning ‘What would it be’. It show Brazilian kids in favelas (slum quarters) playing football in jerseys of participating countries. ING positions itself with its orange lion logo as Oranje is ING, orange is ING.

This one is from McDonalds. Looking at it I believe this commercial is only broadcasted in The Netherlands. It is called ‘Voor Oranje fans’ meaning For Oranje supporters.

This commercial exploits 3 opponents Dutch team faced in three finals of the World Championship. The Orange team did not win any. First mention in this commercial is Argentina (WC final 1978 in Buenos Aires, Argentina), then comes Germany (WC final 1974 in Munich, Germany) and Spain (WC final 2010 in Johannesburg, South Africa).

The country hopes anxiously that the team would win. I know who will win either way; broadcast license holders and FIFA. They will generate so much income in the coming month. I heard that a block of 30 seconds TV commercial broadcast during the match The Netherlands vs Spain tomorrow, cost € 200.000!

I am not into football nor am I an orange supporter. However I am confronted by this orange fever whether I like it or not; at work, in shops and supermarkets and at home. As long as the Dutch team goes further in the competition, everybody is happy. My husband is happy then I am also happy.

Let the Orange Fever begin!

PS If the team makes it to the second round, I will share another story about Orange Fever.